Andy Ruiz vs Anthony Joshua odds: Who is favourite, round betting and knockout chances for heavyweight title rematch

Anthony Joshua goes into Saturday’s heavyweight world title bout looking to regain the WBA, IBF and WBO championships that he lost to Andy Ruiz last June, yet remains the strong favourite with the bookmakers to emerge triumphant.

Joshua suffered a shock seventh-round stoppage in New York on 1 June, suffering the first defeat of his professional career against the 30-yer-old Mexican-American.

With the pair agreeing to a rematch in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia, this Saturday, Joshua has the chance to re-establish himself as a world champion alongside WBC belt holder Deontay Wilder, though a defeat would set Ruiz up for a unification clash against the American.

The odds are in Joshua’s favour even though he lost the initial encounter, and the bookmakers are favouring a points victory over a stoppage for the Briton if he is to reclaim the championships.

Early stoppage?

Joshua has not defeated an opponent by knocking them out in the first round since his victory over Gary Cornish in 2015, and has been forced through the first three rounds in seven of his last nine bouts. That’s reflected by the odds of an early stoppage, with Joshua valued at 28/1, 22/1 and 18/1 to beat Ruiz in the first three rounds respectively.

The bookmakers believe that Joshua is most likely to knock Ruiz out between rounds five and seven, with each valued at 12/1 in Joshua’s favour.

For Ruiz, he is less fancied to record a stoppage win even though he did exactly that six months ago, with large odds or 55/1 on offer for a first round victory. The bookmakers see his most dangerous rounds between the fourth and the eight at 25/1 – more than double Joshua’s odds.

Late stoppage?

Should there be any late drama, there is big money to be made. Joshua is valued at 25/1 for a 12th-round victory, while Ruiz is available at 50/1. Joshua has previous for late stoppages too, having defeated Carlos Takam in the 10th and Wladimir Klitschko in the 11th.

Points win?

Bookmakers appear to believe that the fight is destined to go all the way, with Joshua fancied at 3/1 to record a points win over Ruiz, while the champion is valued at 12/1 to get the nod from the judges.

Match odds

If it’s simply picking a winner that you’re after, Joshua is the strong favourite at 4/9 and Ruiz the outsider at 9/4, although that is a dramatic reduction from the 14/1 price tag that he held ahead of the first fight and given how he dismantled Joshua last June, there is money to be made on the champion.